Review by Gene Daniels in KIN 332 In an recent ESPN segment, analyst and former professional basketball player, Jalen Rose, compared recording artist Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z to Earvin “Magic” Johnson. He did not compare their natural talent, nor did he compare their dominance in their respective professions. Rose compared these two men based on the fact that they have both elevated above stardom to the title of “mogul”. Jay-Z has lived his adult life in the headlines and the starlight and as shown by his recent business maneuvers shows no signs of slowing down. Carter has taken his Roc Nation Entertainment Company to new heights by adding Roc Nation Sports; a sports management agency. Carter is known for his passion for sports and has publicly shown it through the backing of the New York Yankees and more recently the Brooklyn Nets.
In a truly unforeseen move, Carter has aligned his Roc Nation Sports enterprise with Creative Artists Agency, better known as CAA, which happens to be one of the most powerful sports agencies in the business today. As if news of this powerhouse partnership is not enough to silence the critics, Carter inked his first professional athlete; none other than the New York Yankees All-Star second basemen, Robinson Cano. Cano, who finished in the top 5 of the AL MVP ballot voting last season, made the choice to leave well-known agent Scott Boras in favor of Carter and CAA agent Brodie Van Wagenen. In addition to Cano, CAA has individually inked New York Giants’ wide receiver Victor Cruz, and many think this may lead to a deal with Roc Nation Sports. Jay-Z has a specific passion for basketball and he has noted an interest in eventually representing some of the NBA’s elite. In order to do so, Carter most likely will have to rescind his ownership shares in the Brooklyn Nets.
This move is one that has a very interesting dynamic to it. Jay-Z is a global icon and with him comes a global market and global attention. Robinson Cano noted that he made the move to Roc Nation because he likes all the things Jay-Z can offer him off the field. Mixing professional athletes and hip-hop artists to me seems like a marketers dream and I can imagine that this can grow into a mutually beneficial relationship for both Roc Nation and the athletes they represent. Roc Nation can introduce itself to markets that the athletes might have a niche in and conversely the athletes can be exposed to markets that Roc Nation have a strong foothold in. It truly seems like a win-win scenario and I haven’t even mentioned the athletes’ representation on the field. CAA Sports is an extremely reputable agency and is currently known for getting the long-term deals done in a professional and timely fashion. For Shawn Carter, the proof is in the pudding. Almost everything he invests in with man-hours or financially is a success, and I doubt he would make a half-hearted attempt at something so important. The notoriety of Jay-Z paired with the skill and savvy of CAA Sports can lead to even greener pastures for many professional athletes; green pastures of dollar bills, that is.
From the Huffington Post Review by Sylvia Lee in SRM 334 (section 1)
The article, Manti Te'o Gay? NFL Teams Want To Know About Linebacker's Sexuality, Says Mike Florio, discusses how after the Manti Te’o girlfriend hoax, NFL teams are questioning his sexuality. Teams are wondering if this hoax was Te’o’s way of trying to hide the fact that he is gay. Their reason for questioning his sexuality is the concern of whether or not having an openly gay teammate would affect the locker room. During Te’os interview with Katie Couric, he said that he was not gay, but this did not solve the problem. Teams want to directly ask him, but are worried about any backlash this would bring. Due to this, other players are being asked more personal questions than ever before.
My personal view of this is that it should not matter whether a player is gay or not. But as a coach or a general manager, it would be something that would need to be discussed. Although it is not right, having an openly gay teammate could potentially affect the team negatively. In the locker room, other teammates might not be accepting of this and the chemistry of the team would be lost. Outside of the locker room, there are going to be a lot of negativity from fans and other people who are against gay rights, and may protest. Personally, I do not have anything against gays and/or lesbians, but as someone who is directly working with a team, it is something to be considered.
The way some NFL teams are going about the situation I believe is done incorrectly. I think that they should not be allowed to ask these questions. If the questions are not asked, then no one could really know and it will not be as much of an issue; ignorance is bliss. Therefore, other players should not be asked such personal questions, because then it is one less situation that has to be dealt with.
This article is relevant to our course because it is on the media; twitter, television, etc. It also affects the questions being asked to other players, and is a personal subject matter to some NFL fans. --- Review by Ryan Murakami in SRM 334 (section 1) With the NFL draft coming up in about a month, Manti Te’o’s personal life has been a main topic in the sports world. In this article, the author discusses how Te’o’s draft stock might be on the decline due to his girlfriend hoax. During an interview a couple months ago with Katie Couri, Couric asked if Te’o is gay. Teo’s claimed he was “…far from it, far from it…” This has lead many teams to speculate about Te’o and his sexuality. According to some sources many teams have asked him in private interviews about his sexuality and have tried to dig through his past. Teams are afraid of the possible backlash if the media finds out they have been asking these questions but are really interested in knowing the answer.
Social media has plays an important role in the entire Manti Te’o situation including the most recent debates about him. Teams are using social media to discover more about draft candidates to learn about their past. With any job, looking through Twitter and Facebook is a possibility for employers. Teams are afraid of how they will be perceived if they are looking for information about a player’s sexuality. Some members of the media think it is inappropriate to question someone’s sexuality, as it has nothing to do with the player’s ability on the field. Other players are also tweeting about how it is inappropriate for teams to ask about player’s sexuality, for example Shawne Merriman tweeted “Can't believe they're asking Manti Te'o abt. his sexuality…” . Other players might be afraid to voice their opinion because of possibly backlash from the media.
In class, social media has been discussed a lot and how quickly news spreads, how anyone can comment on any story and how anyone can voice their opinion via Twitter or Facebook. Once one player or reporters writes a story everyone hears about it and voices their own opinion.
Teams should have the right to look through the past about potential players to get a judge of their character but searching for their sexuality is another story. Searching for that information says nothing about their character or who they are as a person.
Review by Jordan Underwood in SRM 334 (section 2) Six and a half minutes before half time, of one of the biggest games left in March Madness, the game took a break, literally. Louisville’s sophomore guard, Kevin Ware, jumped up to defend a 3-point-shot and snapped his leg clean in 2 places, it was unlike any injury I have ever seen. The reactions of the other players on the field, on the bench, and all the fans were the same, shocked and worried. Within minutes, the video image of the injury from the game was on youtube, twitter, and other social medias across the web.
Why was this such big news so fast? Understood, that an injury like this is unlike most we see, but why was this worthy of being instant headlines? In the end, Louisville won the game, and in post game interviews, Louisville head coach, Rick Pitino said, “We won this for him.” If Louisville had lost though, would the loss have been blamed on the injury? Chances are that media would have made that assumption and chances are that over the next few days media will say that the injury was the reason Louisville won. “The Cardinals simply refused to lose, breaking open a game that was tied at 42. They dove on the floor for loose balls. They pounded the boards ferociously. They contested every shot and swarmed around the Blue Devils like they had an extra player on the court. In a sense, they did. During every timeout, Pitino reminded the players of their hospitalized teammate” (Fox Sports).
Injuries like this are also huge, motivational stories because they always demonstrate team support. If an athlete gets hurt, you always hear about their teammates supporting their recovery and playing in honor of them, and readers and sports followers love up lifting, feel good stories. “Russ Smith collapsed onto the floor, along with several players, and was crying as doctors attended to Ware. While Ware was loaded onto a stretcher, the Cardinals gathered at midcourt until Pitino called them over, saying the injured player wanted to talk to them before he left. The sophomore, who played his high school ball in suburban Atlanta, urged his teammates to complete the trip to the Georgia Dome. Pitino wiped his eyes as Ware was wheeled out, as did several Louisville players.” (Fox Sports). Though injuries are tragedies for athletes, teams, and fans, they also bring out amazing teamwork and perseverance which makes for great uplifting stories.
